


kid

by gingergenower



Series: Five Times Spider-Man Panics (and one time Peter Parker doesn't) [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Arguing, Canon Compliant, Fluff, I don't know why I inflicted this series on myself, if you squint peter panics, please squint I hate making peter panic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-21
Updated: 2017-08-21
Packaged: 2018-12-18 10:23:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11872365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingergenower/pseuds/gingergenower
Summary: Peter overhears Steve and Tony talking after a fight.





	kid

Tony’s New York safe house is a twenty minute helicopter ride from Manhattan; too far for Happy to drive Peter back now, so he’s staying overnight. Natasha’s curled up on the couch, weapons ditched on the coffee table, and Wanda’s staring into the open fridge and picking at her scratched forearm absentmindedly. Sam’s rooting through a first aid kit to bandage her up, seeming utterly unconcerned that tight-lipped and hands clenched into fists, Steve hissed at Tony that he needed a word, and Tony rolled his eyes but went.

Peter’s upright, sat on the edge of the couch, straining to follow their footsteps march down the corridor. They pick a room three doors down and don’t say a word to each other until one of them shuts the door behind them, and Peter stretches to feign being casual, standing up.

‘Tony, what the hell was he doing out there?’

‘You see, when a man and a woman love each other very much-’

Scurrying out of the room, Peter leaps up onto the ceiling and crawls along until he’s right above their closed door.

‘You said you were looking after him. You said I didn’t have to worry about him,’ Steve says through gritted teeth. He starts to pace, and something thunks down on a desk. It sounds hollow, like his helmet. ‘And yet, there he was, in the middle of a goddamn war and you didn’t even _try_ to stop him.’

Peter closes his eyes, a kind of slow wince. They’re talking about him.

‘That wasn’t a war, it was barely a battle, and those tin can pieces of crap barely got a shot in,’ Tony says, but there’s an edge in his voice.

‘He could’ve died out there! Wanda had to deflect shots away from him and so did I, he didn’t even realise he was one of their main targets-’

‘Shit, Cap, you had to cover his ass? It’s like you’re part of a team or something.’

‘ _Tony_. He’s not trained, he didn’t know what he was doing out there- how old did you say he is? Fifteen?’

‘Sixteen.’

‘Jesus Christ, I don’t- how are you so calm? How are you- he’s not a soldier, he shouldn’t be part of this, I get that he’s got superpowers and he’s brave and he’s smarter than me, but he’s got no experience in battles like that, he’s a _kid_ -’

‘I know,’ Tony snaps. ‘Alright? I _know_.’

Peter blinks, listening hard to the stillness in the room, but his breathing rattles in his chest like stuttering nervous energy. 

Steve’s stopped walking, and Tony drops into a seat with a heavy sigh. 

‘He locked himself in one of my deep storage vaults in Washington last year,’ Tony says, and he sounds exhausted. ‘I spent thirteen years developing the security system on that vault, so it’d probably take me about 40 minutes to crack them. It took him a bit more than an hour.

‘So, therein lies the problem. I can’t lock him up, it wouldn’t work. If he jumps into a fight like that I can’t bodily remove him because he could rip my suits to shreds and getting into that when there are robots or aliens or whatever around isn’t an option, it might kill us both. Taking his suit away doesn’t stop him. I can’t tell him to go home to his aunt and let the adults do their job because he believes in doing the right thing, like he’s trying to remind me of you.

‘There’s only one way I can think of to stop him before he gets out there, and I’ve not been desperate enough to do it yet.'

‘Tony-’

‘I know he’s a kid, ok? He’s _my_ kid.’

For a few moments, they’re completely quiet. Tony says it with such certainty Peter swallows, struggling to blink back tears.

That’s how May says it.

‘Anyway, you really don’t have to worry about him,’ Tony says, tone inexplicably light. ‘I do that plenty. I’m not going to sleep tonight- did you him dive at Wanda? I thought he was using himself as a human shield…’

‘Sounds like you.’

Tony sighs, pained. ‘You could smack him into the sidewalk from twenty floors up and he’d bounce to his feet shouting about how he can do that all day.’

Steve huffs a laugh and says something else, but Peter misses it because someone clears their throat below him.

Leaping off the ceiling and landing on his toes, his heart’s pounding- but it’s Natasha, finger pressed to her lips. She waits until Peter nods to indicate he follow her.

Back down the corridor, Peter’s body acting like he’s sprinted from Manhattan, she takes him back to the communal area. Wanda and Sam have gone, probably to their rooms.

‘You shouldn’t listen into other people’s conversations,’ Natasha says evenly, relaxing back into the couch.

Peter flops next to her, frowning. ‘You’re a spy.’

A smile unfurls in the corner of her mouth, but she doesn’t answer him.

‘Um, Nat?’

‘Yes?’

‘Do you think I’m too young for this?’

She considers him. ‘I think you need more training. I think you’re afraid, and that’s a good thing- the weight of what you’re doing isn’t lost on you. And yes, I think you’re young.’

‘…you should be a politician. You’re really good at not answering a question straight.’

‘I would be a terrible politician,’ she assures him. ‘Have you texted your aunt?’

‘She said she’s going to sleep.’

‘You probably should too.’

‘Who knew Black Widow was big on bedtimes?’

‘I am for children,’ she says, patting his shoulder, and he drops his head against the couch.

‘Urghh.’

‘You’re a growing boy,’ Tony says, striding towards the coffee machine. ‘You need your beauty sleep. C’mon, get some zeds.’

‘I’ll go to bed when you do,’ Peter bargains, kneeling on the couch to grin at Tony.

‘No, I’m a terrible example to follow. Look to Natasha.’

‘She calls you stupid a lot.’

‘I do,’ Natasha shrugs, yawning.

Tony rolls his eyes, pointing a spoon at the door. ‘Kid, go to bed.

‘Ton _y_ ,’ Peter says, drawing out the “y”.

‘Pet _er_ ,’ Tony says, mimicking him. ‘Off you go.’

‘God, you both suck, you don’t _understand_ me,’ Peter says, pouting and whiny. He’s nearly grinning. ‘I’m not a kid, I’m _sixteen_ , I can drive and everything now. I’m basically an adult, I can look after myself.’

‘I’ll sic your aunt on you.’

Peter shrugs, jumping up and bouncing around the couch to hug Tony and let go before he can say anything about it. ‘Goodnight Nat, goodnight Tony, sweet dreams!’ He skips down the corridor to his room, but he still hears Nat chuckling and Tony muttering " _kids_ " behind him.

**Author's Note:**

> honestly marvel will have to pry tony and peter's relationship out of my cold dead hands


End file.
